Nature of the Beast
by denise1
Summary: Sam makes a new friend off world..and they might not live long enough to get to know each other


Nature of the Beast

By

Denise

"Here you go, sir." General George Hammond looked up as the young officer set a steaming cup of coffee down on his desk. "Sorry it took so long, they were just making a fresh pot."

"That's fine. Thank you, Lieutenant." The man left and George reached out picking up the warm mug. He breathed in deep the aroma of the ground beans. There was something special about the first coffee of the day. If he closed his eyes he could almost pretend that he was sitting at his breakfast nook table with his wife puttering in the other room. If he imagined hard enough he could hear the casual crinkle of the newspaper, smell the aroma of bacon and eggs and her special biscuits.

The sudden blare of klaxons shattered his memories and he set down the mug with a sigh. Pushing himself back from his desk, he got to his feet and hurried down the stairs.

"Unscheduled gate activation," Sargent Davis reported, sparing George a bare glance. The wormhole opened and the back wall of the gateroom came alive with wavering cerulean light. "Receiving IDC, sir. It's SG-1, they're under fire." The man's voice changed tone as he realized the seriousness of the situation.

"Open the iris, shut the blast doors. Get the defense teams in there." George stood back as his orders were carried out, turning his attention from the now shielded window, to a small video screen that was now his only visual link to the gateroom.

The iris spun open, revealing the watery surface of the event horizon. Two shapes stumbled through followed quickly by a third. In the bottom of the monitor, George could see the defense teams raising their weapons as they waited for the forth person to come home.

"Close the iris," he heard Teal'c shout as a bulky figure came through the gate. The metal blades spun close as the Teal'c raised his staff weapon, shooting the figure intruding Jaffa. George watched it stagger back against the iris, then fall motionless to the ramp.

"Medical to the embarkation room," Davis called, preempting George's order. Confident that things were under control, George left the control room, hurrying down the stairs.

"What happened? Where's Major Carter?" he asked, taking a quick inventory of the people in the room. Teal'c was still standing guard over the Jaffa he'd shot at the head of the ramp. Jonas was stepping back to allow the medical team to have access to Jack O'Neill. The colonel was lying on the floor, obviously stunned.

"There were Jaffa on P3X468," Jonas reported. "They came through the gate a couple hours after we arrived. We tried to sneak back, but ran into a patrol."

"Colonel O'Neill was struck by a zat blast and fell. Major Carter held back to provide cover fire," Teal'c reported, stepping away from the Jaffa once the medical personnel determined both it and the symbiote were dead. "She was struck by a staff blast. There was no way to aid her." His voice was strained and George could see the anguish in his eyes. "General Hammond, we must return to the planet."

"You will. As soon as we find out what you're walking into."

"General, the longer we wait…" Jonas protested.

"I'm aware of that Mister Quinn. However, I'm not willing to lose more lives in what may very well be a futile mission. We'll debrief as soon as Colonel O'Neill is able," George stated, wanting nothing more than to go through the gate and help his officer out himself. Unfortunately, that kind of rash behavior was a luxury he didn't have.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam closed her eyes and let the Jaffa drag her along the narrow trail. Their hands grabbed her arms with bruising strength but she figured that they must be under orders to capture her alive since Jaffa weren't usually known for mercy. As humiliating as being dragged was, it was slightly better than walking. Which was something she didn't think she could do right now. She knew she hadn't caught the full force of the staff blast on her right leg, but it had been enough to knock her to the ground and stun her long enough for the Jaffa to overwhelm her. They'd been using zats as well, she remembered, seeing again the blue fire arcing over the colonel as he'd fallen. Right now she didn't know if SG-1's reputation was a good or bad thing. Oh for the days of anonymity when they could walk right into Apophis' palace and get treated like honored guests instead of hated enemies.

She heard a guttural voice and her captors released her, unceremoniously dropping her in the dirt. Unable to catch herself, she fell hard, her head knocking into the ground. Pulling her arms under her chest, she pushed herself up, opening her eyes to stare at the pair of boots in front of her face. "Tau'ri scum," he spat reaching down to push her hat off her head. He shoved his fingers through her hair and pulled her head up, forcing her to look him in the face. She saw him frown, then reach for her shoulder, ripping her patch off her jacket. "My lord Ba'al will be pleased. Yet another member of SG-1 for his collection. And you have the stink of the Tok'ra upon you as well. He shall enjoy drawing the secrets you hold from the deepest recesses of your mind."

"Bite me," she muttered, tearing her eyes from his face.

He dropped her head and stood up. "You shall learn your place, Tau'ri." He placed his boot on her right thigh, grinding it into the damaged flesh. Despite her resolve, she screamed, trying to curl into a ball and pull her leg from under his boot. "I shall draw great pleasure in watching my lord break you, as he did your friend. He begged to die…and so shall you."

Over her own strangled breathing, she heard a loud roar and the pressure on her leg suddenly stopped. Oddly enough, the cessation of pain was almost as shocking as the pain itself and all she could do was lie on the ground as she heard staff weapon and zat fire over her head.

All too soon it was quiet. She laid there, not caring about the tears running down her face. She couldn't move, could barely breathe. Her whole universe consisted of the huge explosion of pain in her leg. A shadow appeared over her and she forced here eyes open, desperately hoping to see a friendly face.

She didn't.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"If we're going to assume the tattoo is indicative of who he served, the dead Jaffa belongs to Ba'al," Janet said, laying a Polaroid picture on the briefing room table.

"And he's dead?" Jack asked flatly.

"Yes, sir. Both Jaffa and symbiote were fatally injured. As per standing orders, I've prepared the body to be shipped to Area 51 for study."

"You're sure they got Carter?" Jack asked Teal'c.

"I am, O'Neill."

"She was too far away, colonel," Jonas said. "There was no way to get to her."

"There's always a way," Jack said, his face cold and drawn. It hadn't taken him long to recover from the zat blast, although George had a funny feeling has one of his team not been in danger, O'Neill would be happily languishing in the infirmary, harassing nurses.

Hammond looked at the remainder of the team sitting around the table and sighed quietly. It was never easy when they lost someone, but it was even harder when the casualty was a long-standing member of the command.

"General, we need to go back," Jack insisted.

"Colonel, I am not prepared to risk more people on a recovery mission," George said.

"Recovery?" Jonas said. "General, chances are she's still alive."

"Jonas Quinn speaks the truth," Teal'c said. "The Jaffa were not attempting to kill us, rather capture us alive."

"It's no fun for Ba'al if you're dead," Jack said quietly, his hand rubbing his chest in an unconscious gesture. "And even if they did…kill her. He's got a sarcophagus. He'll use it."

"Sir. Excuse me. The UAV's ready for launch." They all turned to see Sargent Davis standing at the head of the stairs. Needing no prompting, the five people in the briefing room got to their feet and hurried down to the control room. The wormhole opened and George glanced out the window at the small plane perched on its catapult.

"Launch when ready," he ordered, feeling the rest of SG-1 crowding behind him.

The surveillance device zoomed up the ramp and through the gate with a roar audible even through the bulletproof glass. It immediately started to transmit video and Davis pushed a button to send the feed to multiple screens.

At first he saw nothing but heavy green foliage, then small patches of ground through thin places in the canopy. "Suggest you switch to infrared, sir. The trees are pretty thick," Jack said.

Davis typed a command and the picture winked, then came back in the greens and reds of infrared. They could see several small red shapes scurrying through the underbrush, which made sense given the near rain forest environment of the planet.

"Wait, go back," Jack said, leaning forward.

"Did you see something, colonel?"

"I don't know." The plane banked and Jack stared intently at the screen. "There," he said, pointing at the screen. Davis again typed something and a freeze frame image replaced the live feed. "Is that what I think it is?" Jack asked, looking to Teal'c for confirmation.

"It looks like bodies, O'Neill."

"Bodies?" Jonas asked. "Don't you mean people?"

Jack shook his head. "No. They're too cold. Those are bodies," he said tightly.

"The UAV's not picking up anything else, sir," Davis said, watching another screen. "Nothing bigger than animal life."

"Which means there's no danger," Jack concluded.

"Colonel, you reported that the planet was uninhabited," George said.

"That's right," Jonas agreed.

"We're only missing one person, I count two casualties."

"So? Carter took out a couple of Jaffa," Jack said, pointedly ignoring the idea that one of the bodies could be hers.

"Or something else did," Jonas said, playing the devil's advocate.

"Which is all the more reason to stop hanging around here and go give her a hand," Jack said, his voice rising in frustration.

George met Jack's gaze and sighed silently. "Very well. You have a go. You're to investigate the bodies and see if there is any clue as to Major Carter's current situation," he said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam slowly opened her eyes, frowning at the darkness. What the hell had happened? She lay still, replaying her memories. It'd been a normal little planetary survey. The colonel had been making his usual complaints about trees while Jonas had been incredibly fascinated by all the small life forms they'd seen, especially the birds. There'd been a couple of jokes about getting him a parrot when they got back.

It had all been rather idyllic. A nice simple mission set to only last a few hours. Then they'd heard the horn. In an instant, the samples had been abandoned in favor of subterfuge and stealth. They'd almost made it, she remembered. Teal'c and Jonas had dialed the gate while she and the colonel had hung back to provide cover.

But them something went wrong. Somehow the Jaffa has been closer than they'd thought. She remembered the colonel getting struck by zat fire that sent him crashing to the ground. Teal'c firing at the Jaffa while Jonas had run back, picking up the stricken man. She'd run backwards, firing in an effort to keep the Jaffa at bay. There was a blast of pain and she'd fallen to the ground.

They had to have made it home. The Jaffa would have mentioned them somehow. What had happened to the Jaffa? She vaguely recalled them yelling. In the back of her mind she'd thought that maybe the guys had come back for her. No. That's not what happened. If the guys had come she'd be in the infirmary right now, not…wherever she was.

She pulled her arms under her and slowly sat up, biting her lip as her movements jarred her injured thigh. Expecting to be in a cell, she was surprised to discover that she was in some kind of cave. The ground she was lying on was clean, only covered by leaves and oddly enough, what looked to be a pallet of sorts of small branches and twigs. The ceiling was maybe ten feet high with the whole cave being about the same size of her bedroom at home. Through a narrow opening she could see sunlight, partially shielded by the leaves of a bush or small tree.

Instinctively she reached for her radio, only to have her hand encounter an empty pocket. That's right. They'd taken everything. Or not. She felt the pockets of her vest and found a small flashlight. Turning it on, she steeled herself and shifted her position so she could look at her leg. "Oh man," she muttered, making a face. What she was sure had been an ugly burn, was now a deep bloody hole in her leg. The Jaffa's boot had ground dirt into the wound and she knew now that she was in a race against time. Infection in a burn was almost a sure bet. And an infection in a wound on an alien planet with no medical supplies was a good way to get dead.

She had to get home. Or better yet, get somewhere where the guys could find her when they came back. And they damn well better come back, she thought, drawing on mock anger for the energy to get to her feet.

Scooting on her butt until she was against the wall, she awkwardly reached behind her, using the wall as support. Keeping all her weight on her left leg, she experimentally tried to walk on her injured leg, relieved when it would bear at least some of her weight. She could find some sort of crutch when she got outside.

She slowly limped to the cave entrance, carefully poking her head out and listening. Hearing nothing but a few birdcalls, she stepped forward, trying to get her bearings. Hopefully she wasn't too far from the gate. She heard a soft rustle and froze, feeling her heart lurch as a large dark shape melted from the underbrush.

She stared at the large creature, wishing for her gun as it moved silently towards her. It looked up and frowned, baring its teeth and hurrying forward, obviously alarmed at Sam's presence. She instinctively limped back into the cave, losing her balance and falling down. The creature pushed aside the branches and stepped into the recess. Sam scooted back on her butt, stopping when she reached the wall and could go no further.

The creature continued forward, towering over her. Raising her arms she pulled up her good leg and tried to curl into a protective ball. She could feel hot breath on her hands and hear the huffing sound of the creature sniffing her, smell the rank odor of a large unwashed body, feel it's hair tickling the exposed skin on her hands. Expecting at any second to be killed, she was surprised when it moved off. Hearing the rustle of leaves, she slowly unburied her head, amazed to not only be alive but to again be alone.

Her hands shaking with adrenaline, she ran her fingers through her hair. "Yeah, ok. I'll just…stay here," she muttered.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack exited the wormhole, his gun at the ready. He heard the unmistakable slurping sound of Jonas and Teal'c coming through behind him. The area around the gate was just as deserted as the UAV had promised. Teal'c walked past him, staring intently at the ground while he and Jonas stayed on the platform, not wanting to destroy any tracks. "Whatcha got?" he asked of the Jaffa.

"Our footprints are the last ones here, save some animals. If the Jaffa have taken Major Carter, they did not leave by the Stargate," he said.

"They could have left in a ship," Jonas said, his tone apologetic.

Jack merely shot him a chilling glance and walked over to Teal'c. "Which way?"

Teal'c pointed with his staff weapon. "She fell over there."

Jack nodded. "You got point," he said tersely. Motioning to Jonas to follow Teal'c, Jack fell back to the rear position.

Like on many other planets, the Stargate was located in a small clearing in the dense tropical foliage. He could see signs that the jungle was slowly retaking the land, small trees and vines littered the clearing. The encroaching vegetation was one reason the Jaffa had been able to get the drop on them earlier. It also made him wonder what Ba'al's Jaffa had been doing here. There was little to no naquadah on the planet and seemingly nothing of value unless they managed to find the cure for cancer in one of the plant samples Carter had been gathering.

Teal'c paused and knelt down, studying the ground intently. Jack picked up the pace and knelt beside him, trusting Jonas to keep an eye on the surroundings. "She was injured," Teal'c reported, pointing at bloodstains in the grass. "Two Jaffa dragged her off." Jack could see the unmistakable signs of two sets of footprints with two lines between them, the kind caused by boots being dragged through the grass.

"That's not much blood," Jack said hopefully.

"True," Teal'c agreed. "Staff weapons do often cauterize the wound." Teal'c got to his feet. "They went that way."

"Then, that way it is."

Teal'c nodded and started walking, his eyes intent upon the ground. Jack again took the rear position, his mind torn between what he wanted to find, and what he had a bad feeling he would find.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam gave one last yank and felt the fabric finally give way. Breathing heavily from her effort she set down her small penknife and looked at the broad strip of black cloth in her hands. Her T-shirt was now a crop top, but at least she had something to bind her leg with. Now was the part she wasn't looking forward to.

Twisting her hips to put all her weight on her left side, she used her knife to gently pick at the heavy fabric of her pants. Blood and other fluids had dried, almost gluing the fabric to her skin. She knew from experience that normally the debriedment would take place under sterile conditions and, more importantly, anesthesia. That wasn't an option right now. Infection was inevitable, but she hoped that by at least covering the wound, she could try to minimize it.

Holding the flashlight in her teeth, she took a couple of deep breaths to steel her nerves. She slid the blade of her knife between her skin and the canvas fabric, trying to ease them apart. As she worked, she shot glances towards the entrance and wondered what exactly she had seen.

The UAV had shown no signs of civilization, but it had certainly been wrong before. And…it hadn't looked like a person. Granted, she'd been more than a little panicked at the time but it looked like nothing she'd ever seen before.

The creature had been tall, she remembered it ducking to enter the cave and the top of its head seemingly just inches from the ceiling. It hadn't been wearing any clothes, just lots of long reddish brown hair. Its face had been definitely hominid, but also slightly animal like, almost like a cross between a baboon, a gorilla and a human.

She heard the rustle of leaves and looked up, her hand tightening around her knife, ignoring just how puny a weapon it really was.

The creature walked into the cave, giving her a curious look. It was carrying a few leafy branches in its hand and she watched it make its way over to the small pile of leaves and twigs. It sat down, pulling the leaves into its lap. It looked at her again, then stripped some of the leaves from the branches, shoving them into its mouth. She watched it chew, feeling a little silly holding out the knife. Slowly, she lowered it, keeping her eyes fixed on the creature. She took the flashlight out of her mouth and turned it off.

As minute after minute passed, she relaxed a bit, leaning her head against the cave wall. She was tired, so very tired. Too much adrenaline and too little food over the last few hours had left her drained. That was something else she'd have to work on. If big and hairy wouldn't let her leave the cave she'd have to either find a way out, or try to convince him to bring her something to drink.

It moved and she jerked her head away from the wall, bringing the knife up again, hoping to ward it off. She saw it crawl forward, then frown. It negligently batted her hand aside, crouching beside her. Seeing the muscles beneath the fur and realizing that her strength was really no match to his, she forced herself to lie still. He raised his hand and spat some chewed up leaves into his palm. He mashed the viscous mixture flat then laid his palm over her wound.

"Hey," she protested, causing him to look sharply at her. "That's gross," she said, trying not to think of the stupidity of talking to something that didn't understand her. "It's…bad," she said lamely, making a face. He frowned and quirked his head, then spat out another glob. This time he flattened it out and mimed pressing it against his own arm. He then applied it to her burn, using his left hand to stay her right hand as she tried to stop him. His grip was gentle but firm. She could feel the tips of his long nails pressed against her inner wrist and knew if he really wanted to hurt her, she'd already be dead.

Following her instincts, she relaxed, letting him apply more of the medicine. What the hell. It was probably already infected anyway, she though, leaning her head back against the wall.

Idly she watched him patiently cover the wound with glob after glob of the leaf until her whole wound was covered with the paste. He grunted and leaned back, apparently done. He picked up the torn off part of her T-shirt and held it up, sniffing it slightly. "I want to use it as a bandage," she said, holding out her hand. He looked up and met her gaze, puzzlement clear on his face. "Give it here." She snagged a dangling end and pulled gently. He huffed and tightened his grip. "Give it," she insisted, pulling a bit harder. He let go and edged back, watching curiously. She wound it around her upper thigh, tying the ends at the front of her leg. "Bandage," she said, pointing at the bit of material.

He snorted and got to his feet, walking back to the pallet. She watched him, she'd decided that it was a he, strip more of the leaves, again cramming them into his mouth. This time when he spat it out, she saw him twist his arm behind his back, grunting with the effort. He frowned, then chewed some more leaves and tried again. He had to have been hurt as well, she thought. She watched him struggle for several more minutes, then sighed.

Bracing herself against the wall, she eased to her feet, ignoring when he too got up. He moved, placing himself between her and the entrance to the cave. "It's ok," she said, limping over to his pallet. She bent over and picked up the soggy leaves from the dirt. "Let me help you," she said, holding out the mass.

He cocked his head and huffed. Remembering what he'd done, she mimed placing the medicine on her own arm, then beckoned him to come forward. He edged forward until he was an arm's length away. "Turn around," she said, making a turning motion with her hand. Slowly he did as she mimed and she made a face at his back. He'd been shot too; a large patch of fur was singed away leaving behind only raw seeping flesh. The wound was in the middle of his back between his shoulder blades. It was an injury that likely would have killed a human.

"Ok. I'm gonna…" She gently laid her left hand on his shoulder and tried to use her right to apply the leaves. He reached back and batted the paste out of her hand with a soft growl. "What? I thought…" He took her right hand in his and brought it up to his mouth, spitting fresh leaves into her palm. He then turned to allow her access to the injury.

Mimicking his movements, she flattened the mess out, noticing that it had an almost oily texture. She gently pressed it into the wound. He turned again and she held out her hand, letting him spit more into her palm. It took her several minutes to finish covering the raw flesh with the substance. She took a step back and limped back to her corner of the cave. She eased herself down to the ground, noting that either she was getting used to it, or the stuff was definitely helping with the pain.

She wiped her hands off on her good pants leg and frowned, flexing her hand. "It's an anesthetic," she said, rubbing her numb right palm with the fingers of her left hand. "Right. Like you understand what I'm saying," she muttered feeling her eyelids growing heavy. Figuring that the leaves had more than a topical effect, she gave into the feeling and let her eyes close, falling asleep within seconds.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"At least the UAV was right about something," Jack muttered, staring at the two Jaffa bodies lying before him.

"These could be the two that dragged Sam…" Jonas started, then let his voice trail off at Teal'c's sharp look.

"Yeah, well color me happy, but Jaffa don't usually just let their prisoners go and die all on their own," Jack said fiddling with the zat he'd picked up. It was Carter's and it was still in its holster. His fingers ran over the melted bits of webbing clinging to the weapon's surface. He guessed she'd been shot in the leg. Which could be good news…maybe. It probably wasn't fatal, but she wouldn't be too mobile either.

"They did not just die, they were killed," Teal'c said, turning one of the bodies over.

"Ouch," Jack said at the sight of the blood-covered corpse. The man's neck had literally been torn open; the bones of his spine being all that was keeping the head attached to the torso. "What the hell could do that?"

"There's no way Sam…"

"No, Jonas Quinn. This type of injury can only be done by an animal of some sort. The other one has been eviscerated. There was a third Jaffa that apparently escaped."

"So, where's Carter? Did she get away while…whatever killed the Jaffa."

"I do not believe so." Teal'c pointed out to a large flattened place in the grass. "She was dragged here, then dropped to the ground."

"It didn't get her did it?" Jonas asked.

Teal'c shook his head. "There is not enough blood for there to be a third victim. And I see only two sets of footprints leaving this place. One wearing Jaffa boots…"

"And the other?"

"I do not know what made it. It resembles nothing I have ever seen before," Teal'c said, pointing to a huge footprint made in the dirt.

"Wow," Jack whispered, shoving Sam's zat into his jacket. The footprint was huge, several inches longer than Teal'c's own foot.

"Indeed."

"So, in addition to Sam being missing, we have a giant creature running around that likes to rip people to shreds?" Jonas asked.

"Not people. Just Jaffa," Jack quipped, patting Jonas on the shoulder. "We got nothing to worry about."

"I can not be certain, however I believe that the depth of the creature's footprints is greater as he leaves than when he joined the group."

"So?"

"As if he were burdened by something."

Jack studied the tracks on the ground, trying to make a decision. Logically, if anyone carted Carter off, it'd be the Jaffa. But if Teal'c was right, big foot had been carrying something. He could sense Jonas looking at him, Teal'c too, both waiting for his decision. If the Jaffa had taken her, a wild goose chase could give him plenty of time to circle back to the gate and take her to parts unknown. But if it was the creature, she was probably due to be dinner if the states of the two Jaffa was any indication. A fifty-fifty chance…and a choice between life and death. "Let's follow the…thing," he said, fighting the urge to cross his fingers for luck.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam opened her eyes, watching as her impromptu roommate get up from his pallet and walk out of the cave. It was now nighttime and she guessed that she'd slept for several hours. She slowly scooted to a sitting position, realizing what had woken her up. Great. How was she going to explain a bathroom break to her friend? She shot a contemplative glance towards the opening. Then again, if he didn't know about it, he couldn't complain.

She got to her feet, noticing that her leg hurt at lot less than before and that she could bear a little more weight on it than she could last night.

She slowly limped to the cave entrance and cautiously slipped outside. The planet had two moons, both of which were full, making it almost as bright as day, once her eyes adjusted.

All around her she could hear the croaking of what sounded like tree frogs and an occasional rustle through the under brush. She didn't dare go too far, she thought, remembering various documentaries she'd seen about the Amazon, about how the biggest and most dangerous creatures came out at night.

Deciding to only go a few yards away, she made her way into the bushes, her task complicated by her injury. Several minutes later she left her makeshift latrine, wishing for a minute that she was a man, complete with far more convenient plumbing. She started for the cave, then stopped as the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

Something was wrong. The frogs. They weren't singing anymore. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she edged forward, peeking around the bush. "Crap," she breathed, at the sight of the creature, just emerging from the cave. Evidentially her departure hadn't gone unnoticed. Preparing herself for what was sure to be an angry reaction, she started forward, only to pull back as the all too familiar zinging of a zat shattered the stillness.

She watched the creature fall, his limbs twitching uncontrollably. A Jaffa came into view, standing over the helpless behemoth. He barked a question in goa'uld, the only word of which she understood was Tau'ri. He was looking for her. He yelled again, this time drawing his knife and holding it to the stunned creature's throat. He was going to kill him, and all because of her. She looked around, desperately wishing for her gun. She found a baseball bat sized branch and picked it up as she heard the Jaffa yell a third time, his voice full of anger.

Steeling herself against the pain from her leg, she stepped forward, trying not to make a sound. Just as she got within reach, the Jaffa turned. She swung, hitting him hard enough for the branch to break and his head to jerk back.

He staggered and she stepped back, her leg giving out from under her. She fell as he regained his balance, now coming after her with the knife. Gripping the remains of the branch, she held it out in front of her, hoping it would give her some measure of protection.

He towered over her; the blade of the knife glinting in the moonlight, only to be knocked aside by her friend. The creature's roar of anger echoed through the trees as the two figures fought, their shapes becoming indistinguishable in the low light.

Sam struggled to her feet, her boot kicking the Jaffa's discarded zat. Picking it up, she armed it, trying to aim at the struggling figures. They were locked in their battle, their bodies meshed into one large dark form. Had it been long enough? Could her friend sustain another shot without it being fatal?

She heard a loud grunt and the two figures slowly separated. One of them staggered to his feet, his armor glinting in the moonlight. His harsh breathing audible even at a distance, he towered over his vanquished opponent.

"Kree!" she yelled, waiting until he turned to fire. He staggered, then sneered a few words in goa'uld. He turned back to the creature and she fired a second, then third time, relieved to see him vanish.

She limped her way over to her friend, her concern growing by the second. Why wasn't he getting up?

As she reached him, he started to rouse, whimpering a bit as he rolled to his side, curling up in the fetal position. "Are you hurt?" she asked, gently laying her hand on his arm. His only response was to growl softly and pull away from her. Sam heard a branch snap behind her and spun, the zat primed and armed.

"Glad to see you too," Jack quipped, stepping out from the underbrush, followed by Jonas and Teal'c.

Sam relaxed and lowered the zat. "Took you long enough," she parried, hiding her relief in sarcasm. It was a far more dignified response then throwing herself at the rest of her team.

"Jonas had to get something to eat before we could come back. What the hell is that?" Jack said, raising his weapon.

"I don't know exactly. He helped me."

Teal'c knelt on the other side of the creature. "It lives, however it is gravely wounded," he said.

"We still have at least one Jaffa out there. We need to book back to the gate. Jonas, help Carter."

Jonas stepped forward, holding out his hand to help Sam up. "The other Jaffa's dead. What about him?" she asked, ignoring the Kelownan.

"What about him?"

"We're not leaving him here," she declared, getting to her feet.

"We are not taking that…whatever back with us," Jack said, shining his flashlight over the moaning creature.

"He saved my life. I'm not leaving him here," she insisted.

"Carter…"

"Colonel. He's intelligent."

"He ripped two Jaffa to shreds."

"To save my life."

"He could have been saving you for a midnight snack. Big foot stays," Jack insisted.

"He stays, I stay," Sam declared, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Umm…we argue about this too much longer, it won't matter," Jonas said, kneeling beside Teal'c. "He's bleeding, bad."

"We are only a short distance from the Stargate, O'Neill," Teal'c said.

"There's plenty of branches to make a travois with," Jonas said.

Jack looked at the defiant faces of his team and rolled his eyes, sighing dramatically. "Fine. We take it back. But you are NOT keeping it."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack followed the rest of his team, pausing as Jonas and Teal'c switched places pulling the creature. Despite assurances that all three Jaffa were dead, Jack was still being cautious. The first bunch had popped out of no where, and the last thing they needed was to run into anymore of them. Carter stopped as well, leaning on her makeshift walking stick. Jack pulled out his canteen and offered it to her, not surprised when she took it and drank deeply. "If it's bleeding as bad as Teal'c said, it's probably going to die," he said taking the canteen back. "We can't exactly raid the blood bank for it."

"I know. But if we leave him here, he'll die for certain. At least this way he stands a chance."

"How's the leg?" he asked, acknowledging that they'd never agree on this particular subject. Only time would tell who was right.

She shrugged. "I haven't looked lately. He put something on it, this leaf. It has anesthetic properties. He used it to treat himself too."

"Colonel?" Jonas called softly. "The gate's just over that rise."

Jack looked and saw that Teal'c was already a small distance away. Carter started forward, leaning heavily on the stout branch. Jack rolled his eyes and hurried forward, grabbing her arm and pulling it over his shoulder. "The sooner we get big foot home, the sooner we get to try and find a vet that makes house calls."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"This is amazing," Janet said, examining the wound on Sam's leg

"Excuse me?" Sam asked, shooting her friend a skeptical look.

Janet chuckled. "Given the severity of the burn, you should be looking at weeks for it to fully heal. Instead, there's no infection and already some cellular regeneration. There's going to be some scarring, but a lot less than I'd expect. If it keeps healing at this rate, you can be back on duty in a couple of weeks." She taped down the bandage and stepped back, taking off her gloves.

"How's Harry?" Sam asked, adopting the colonel's nickname for the creature. She straightened her clothes, awkwardly pulling up the loose fitting scrub pants she was wearing and shifted her position in the bed, still careful to keep her weight off her wound. She was feeling distinctly better; eighteen hours of drug induced sleep and the occasional shot of morphine doing wonders for her disposition.

"Still the same," Janet said. The doctor had been able to repair the damage caused by the Jaffa's knife, finding that Harry's internal organs bore at least a little resemblance to human anatomy. For his safety, and the safety of everyone else on the base, the creature had been locked up in one of the detention cells under heavy guard for the last two days. The guard, however, hadn't proved necessary, since after waking up from anesthesia, all the creature had done was curl up in one corner of the cell, studiously ignoring Jonas' attempts to communicate.

"He needs to go back," Sam said.

Janet nodded. "Yeah. The problem is, how to get him there? I'm afraid to tranquilize him, his anatomy may be similar, but his blood isn't. I don't know what effect it'll have."

"Let me talk to him."

"Talk?" the doctor asked skeptically.

"It sounds silly, and no one else believes me but…there's something about him. He's intelligent. He knew which leaves to get to help us and how to process them. He knew that it was safe in the cave, maybe even that there was still a Jaffa out there."

"Birds know how to build a nest and Cassie's dog knows to stay in out of the rain. But I'm not ready to call either of them sentient," Janet argued gently. "But," she continued to Sam's defiant look. "It can't hurt to try." Janet stepped around the curtain and came back with a pair of crutches. "It's these or a wheel chair," she replied to Sam's look.

"Crutches, my favorite," the major replied, sliding off the bed.

The pair slowly made their way up to the detention cells on level 16 where Harry was being kept. The SF opened the door and they walked into the spartan room. Harry was in a large cage against one wall. Jonas was sitting on a folding chair, Teal'c standing behind him, a zat held casually in his hand.

"Sam."

"Major Carter."

"Hey, guys," Sam acknowledged, walking past them and approaching the cell. "Hi," she said, stopping at the bars. Harry ignored her.

"He hasn't eaten since he woke up," Jonas said, coming to stand beside her.

"Janet told me." She moved around the cage, trying to get near to the creature.

"I do not believe he will thrive in this environment," Teal'c said, also moving to stand by his teammates.

Sam shook her head. "He needs to go home. The only problem is how to get him through the gate without him freaking out and hurting anyone."

"You could knock him out," Jack suggested, walking into the room.

"Sir."

"I don't want to do that, colonel. I don't know how it'll affect him. I didn't use anesthesia when I stitched him up," Janet said.

"Will the stitches hurt him?" Sam asked.

Janet shook her head. "His body will just absorb them."

"Whoa," Jack said as Sam felt something brush her hand. She looked down to see Harry reaching up; the tips of his claws brushing her hand as it rested on the bars.

"Hi." She leaned closer, letting Harry pull her hand into the cage and sniff it. Apparently satisfied with who she was, he slowly straightened out, pausing to clutch at his belly. He looked down and used both hands to pick at the wound. Sam could see a long line of stitches bisecting a large patch of bare skin. He looked up at Sam, a puzzled look on his face. "It's medicine. Umm…" She made a spitting sound into her hand and pressed her palm against her arm, mimicking his motion from on the planet. He huffed and frowned, but removed his hands from the wound.

"Colonel," Janet said.

"Yeah, Doc. I got it. Carter, you think you can control him?"

"Sir?"

"If we clear the corridors, do you think you can get him down to the gateroom?"

Sam studied Harry, frowning a bit. "I think so, sir."

"I'll let Hammond know. Jonas, Teal'c, get geared up," Jack ordered.

"I should come too," Sam said.

"Sam," Janet started to protest.

"We have no way of knowing how he'll react. I think he'll behave as long as I'm there."

Jack looked to Janet who shrugged. "Fine."

Sam gently pulled her hand away from Harry. "I'll be right back," she said, stepping away. Harry followed her, grunting in dismay as he encountered the bars of the cell. "It's ok. I'll be right back," Sam said, moving away. Harry responded by grabbing the bars and shaking them experimentally.

"Aah, Carter…" Jack said as Teal'c armed his zat.

"Maybe I'll just…change in here," Sam said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jack trailed several feet behind Carter and Harry, his hands on his weapon. So far their slow trip to the gateroom had been largely uneventful, but he wasn't quite ready to relax, not yet. He'd relax when Harry was safely back on his own planet.

They made it into the gateroom and Jack looked up, returning Hammond's nod. They'd decided against having any other people present or using anything like the loud speakers, afraid that they'd startle the creature. The gate was already active and Jack knew Hammond had already sent a MALP through to insure that the area around the gate was safe.

"Sir?"

"Gate's clear," Jack answered Sam's question, biting back a grin at the glimpse of white scrubs peeking out from under her fatigues.

Teal'c and Jonas climbed up the ramp and stepped through the gate. Sam followed them, struggling a bit with her crutches on the metal grate. She turned and beckoned Harry who was staring suspiciously at the ramp. "It's ok," she urged, holding out her hand.

He snorted and followed her, making a face at the feel of the metal against his feet. Sam paused at the event horizon, waiting for Harry to catch up. He came beside her and stopped, sniffing the rippling surface.

"Here." Jack held out his hand. "Hand me your crutch. You both better go through at the same time." Sam handed the metal devices over. "It's either that or I give him a shove. I think holding hands will go over better."

Sam nodded, reaching down to take Harry's large hand in her own. "It's a piece of cake," she said, gently pulling him forward. He resisted a bit, then followed her through the wormhole.

Jack followed quickly, arriving just in time to steady Sam as she stumbled, her balance thrown off by Harry pulling his hand free and hurrying down the short flight of steps. The gate snapped shut as Jack handed Sam her crutches. Jonas and Teal'c gave Harry a wide berth as he circled the gate, sniffing furiously.

"Teal'c, dial it up," Jack said, following Sam down the steps.

"Colonel?" Jonas asked, watching Harry reacquaint himself.

"We got him home, I'm not walking him to his door," Jack replied.

Teal'c started to dial the DHD, causing Harry to come to stand beside the Jaffa. He watched Teal'c push in the panels, then jumped back when the wormhole opened. Teal'c pushed up his sleeve and sent the IDC code. "We can return, O'Neill."

"Let's go home," Jack said, motioning for Sam to proceed him. Harry roared and hurried forward, putting a restraining hand on Sam's arm. Jack heard Teal'c arm his zat as he brought up his gun, quickly flicking the safety off.

"Don't," Sam urged. "Harry, I need to go," she said, her voice gentler. She put her hand on her chest. "I need to go." She pantomimed going through the gate. He snorted and used his other hand to point at his feet. She shook her head. "I can't stay." He threw back his head and howled, making them all jump.

"O'Neill."

Jack turned to see Teal'c studying the tree line. As they watched, the foliage parted, a dozen other shapes stepping out into the open. Harry barked some more and one of them answered, disappearing back into the foliage.

"Crap," Jack said. "Carter?"

"I don't think they're going to hurt us," she said, staring at Harry's face.

"Well, that makes one of us. Jonas, Teal'c, close up," Jack said. The two men slowly edged closer to the gate. Jack's hope was that they could get Carter away from big foot and get through the gate before all his friends could get to them.

"It's back," Jonas said.

Jack watched the alien that had disappeared reemerge from the undergrowth, clutching something in its hands. Keeping a wary eye on the intruders, it loped across the clearing, coming to a stop beside Harry. It handed him the small branches it had gathered. Harry turned and held them out to Sam. She took them as he spat in his hand and patted his arm. "The leaves," she said. "Colonel, he…he just wanted to give us some of the leaves," she said as Harry stepped back.

"Peachy," Jack said slowly. "Think we can go now or does he want to exchange recipes too?"

"Thank you," she said. Harry sniffed once again, then turned and loped away as the others melted back into the trees.

"Come on, Fay Wray, let's go home," Jack said, ushering his team through the gate and back to Earth.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Janet rang the doorbell, smiling at the faint sounds of a movie filtering through the open windows. Lord of the Rings, she guessed, picking out the soundtrack. The door opened, revealing Colonel O'Neill casually attired in jeans and a T-shirt. "Doc? I didn't know you were coming, we already started the movie."

"Hi, colonel. No, I…I just got some lab results back and didn't want to wait until morning. Do you mind if I come in?"

Jack frowned. "Nothing bad?"

"No. No," she reassured, stepping past him as he opened the door. She entered the living room, smiling at the sight of the three members of SG-1 sprawled on various pieces of furniture.

"Janet, hi. I didn't know you were coming," Sam said. "I think there's still some pizza left."

"No. Thanks. I can't stay," Janet said as Jack walked into the room, pausing the DVD.

"You know we took some samples of Harry, his fur and blood."

"Right."

"Did you discover something of interest, Doctor Fraiser?" Teal'c asked.

"You could say that." Janet sat down. "I had a silly suspicion so I sent them to an old friend of mine. Have you ever heard of the Slicker Expedition?"

"Texas millionaire. He was obsessed with finding proof of the Yeti," Jonas said. "Or what they call in North America the Sasquatch. Sir Edmund Hillary also had an expedition. We get the History Channel too," he said in response to everyone's looks.

"Yeah. Ok, on that expedition, he brought back some hair samples, no one ever really proved what animal they belonged to…they're a ninety-five percent match for Harry's," she said, holding out the folder to Sam.

"You're kidding me? Big foot was really…Big Foot?" Jack asked.

"It looks that way, Colonel."

"I wonder if they came to Earth, or from Earth?" Jonas asked.

"I wonder when?" Sam asked, leafing through the folder.

"I just hope we don't find Nessie next time," Jack quipped. "Because there's no way in hell we're dragging that back through the gate."

Fin


End file.
